Day 5: Exploring Hunza

After a few days of constant travel, having a couple of days in Hunza to unwind has been a nice change. It was also our opportunity to meet the local team from Silk Route Expeditions, who would be coordinating everything during the Pakistan part of our trip:

Didar Ali – Owner & Guide
Muhammad Shifa – Owner & Guide
Professor Sher Baz – Cultural Guide & local school teacher
Nazrab – Head of Security & retired police chief for Gilgit-Baltistan region
Izhar – Assistant Guide & Shifa’s son
Ayaz – Assistant Guide

Today was a very “local” day, starting with a visit to a non-profit teaching girls computer skills like web design and online marketing – skills that they can then sell as a freelancer. After that we went to visit the Aga Khan school, a private school for girls which is very selective about taking in the best and brightest students. The school was set on a lovely campus, and it was a delightful opportunity to meet and talk with some of these ambitious young girls. Inspirational stuff!

We rounded off the morning with a visit to a local carpet factory set up by Didar, where natural-dyed traditional carpets wee being made by hand – it takes around four months to make a 5′ x 7′ rug! Lunch was taken at our local representative’s Didar Ali’s house surrounded by orchard trees on a steep hillside just out of town.

In the late afternoon we visited Baltit Fort which looms above Karimabad village. For around eight centuries this was the seat of power for the local Mir (ruler) until he moved down the hill to more comfortable digs in the mid-20th century. The building then fell into neglect, but it was painstakingly repaired and renovated over several years in the 1990s and now looks as it did in its prime. It must have been quite a sight when the British army entered the valley in 1891!

It was a steep walk up cobbled streets through the old village to the base of the fort, where we were met by the curator who led us on a tour of it which included a painfully long video of old photos of the building and supposedly notable/historic people in the valley. Following tea on the rooftop as the sun dipped down behind the mountain ridge, we went into the old dining hall where we were treated to a dinner of local specialties accompanied by local artists playing traditional music and some dancing. In many ways – the layout of the room, the mood lighting, the music – it reminded me of Marrakech in Morocco. Interestingly, all the entertainment was performed by men and we didn’t see a single women while we were there – in the Hunza culture women would only dance at a private family event or gathering.